Kindness
by NeonZangetsu
Summary: He never once knew kindness, only abuse and mistreatment. All his good deeds were thrown by the wayside, and he was left, alone, abandonded, disparaged. He fell into despair, only to be pulled from it...by kindness MuramasaxInoue Crack pairing, Angst, etc
1. Chapter 1

_**Damnit all! I didn't want to write this oneshot, but after the latest bleach episode, it just wouldn't let me be! I felt so sorry for poor Muramasa, he did all that for his wielder, and for what? Jack squat! The guy deserves, no needs a second chance! So I'll give him one!**_

**_Watch the latest bleach episode or you WILL be confused._**

_"Oof!" _His attack was abruptly halted as he collided with a wall of orange. Angered, he tried to smash through it, only for the strike to stop halfway. Pain, pain like no other filled him. Groaning, the creature clutched its gut and doubled over, howling in pain. With a sickening crack, his mask shattered, dissolving into thin air

The air rushed out of his lungs, and with it a torrent of black liquid from behind the mouthpiece of the mask. He lay there for a moment, gasping on his hands and knees before vomitting again, his body purging itself of the last traces of hollow reiatsu.

Then...there was darkness.

"He's coming around!"

Muramasa blinked slowly as he rose from the brink of death, his bleary gaze focusing, adjusting taking in the strange scene before him. Realizing what had happened, what he had become, a hand flew to his face, but it was in vain. There was a short, relieved sigh as his long nails grazed skin, and not bone. Exhausted, he remained where he lay, on his knees.

Then, came the despair.

Koga's reaitsu...

"What...have I done? Koga, you're..."

Was gone.

"Kouga...._what have I done?!"_

Tears, blood red liquid, glassed over in his eyes, pooling down over his cheek as a sob wracked his body. Muramasa made a strange sound then. It was a mix between a horrible scream and and horrified sob, muffled only as he buried his face into the dew soaked grass.

"You did what you thought was right."

At the sound of that voice, his head snapped upward to meet a familiar face.

"You?"

It was that human girl again. Inoue Orihime, Kurosaki Ichigo had called her.

The rogue zanpaktou made a surprised, choking sound. He...didn't know how to respond to this woman. Her kindness bordered on naivete, as if she wanted to see the good in everyone, the good in him. Foolish, yes, she was foolish. Who healed their enemies? Who fought with kindness, rather than hatred in their heart?

Apparently, she did.

"I think, that everyone deserves a second chance, don't you? Maybe you could find yourself another shinigami and start over?"

"Impossible." The words had already left his mouth, so he might as well speak the rest of them. "I do no deserve your kindness, nor my life. Now leave me to my misery."

"Of course you deserve kindness-

Something about those words just set Muramasa off. He'd deserved a great many things in his considerable, and he'd never once asked for any of them, even as the opportunity passed him by time and time again. Now this girl, this human, was trying to tell him what to do? How _dare_ she!

"I do not deserve a thing, _wench!"_

Muramasa batted her hand away then, violently, and Inoue winced. Immediately, Muramasa frowned, distress flowing through him, coursing through is veins, as he recognized the faint stench of human blood, now dripping off his fingernails. He'd used excessive force and cut her palm. It was a thin wound, and she was already tending to it with that strange ability of hers, but the damage had been done.

"Inoue!" Kurosaki scowled, stepping forward, brandishing Tensa Zangetsu with obvious intent. Despite himself, despite his willingness to just die, right there on the spot, Muramasa flinched.

"Y-Yamaro! Stop it, Kurosaki-kun!"

Or so Murmasa thought.

Now, Inoue, arms spread wide, had placed herself between the wrathful vizard and the despondent zanpaktou.

"Inoue, what're you doing?! Move out of the way!"

"Muramasa-san, he deserves to be happy!" Inoue was obviously in pain from the injury, but still, she continued, hot, angry, stinging tears welling up in her silvery violet eyes as she continued to speak. "Happiness is something we all deserve, because no one should have to go through that kind of pain! Not even an enemy! It's just...it's just wrong!"

"Nani?"

"So please," Now, the human girl turned back to Muramasa and held out her hand again, her expression teary, yet her voice soft, planitive, pleading and begging with him. "Won't you just let someone help you?"

Muramasa eyed her hand warily this time, as if he were _considering_, yet afraid to take it. In reality, he was afraid of so much more. He'd been a simple zanpaktou once. He'd comforted his master when he was troubled, reassured him, guided him. Indeed, he had given everything for Kouga's sake. And to that end, despite years and years of planning, plotting, and work, _he_ had been deemed a unstable tool and tossed aside.

Already, Muramasa could feel the despair welling up inside his heart. He could not bear the thought of being abandoned, not again. If that were to happen, he would impale himself upon his own blade, rather than continue to exist.

"You just need to trust someone."

Reluctantly, Muramasa took her hand. Her fingertips were warm, soft, in comparison to his own. Willing himself to continue, Muramasa seized her palm, made his hand into a fist around hers, and allowed Inoue to help him to his feet.

"Inoue...Rukia breathed, awed at the sudden turnaround her friend had spurred in Muramasa.

Byakuya remained silent, his stony gaze reflecting nothing.

"Woman..."Releasing her hand, Muramasa fumbled with the words, a complex set of feelings he could not yet bring himself to understand. At last, he settle for something obvious, if pathetic and cliche sounding.

"You are too kind."

Orihime giggled innocently.

There was a clattering sound then, and everyone Byakuya, Ichigo, Sado, Uryuu, Rukia and all the other zanpakto spirits, glanced down just as an exact replica of Muramasa's sealed stated suddenly popped into existence within Inoue's free hand, which involuntarily closed around its sheathe.

"Huh?" _Now_ Inoue noticed the katana, her eyes widening with confusion as she beheld the blade. "Where'd this come from? It looks just like-

Muramasa stared in surprise, uttering but one word.

"Me."

**_There, now that I've gotten this damned monkey off my back, read and review damnit! And as said before, I do not own bleach, though I did my very best to keep everyone within character in this fic!_**


	2. Nani?

**Well, for the sake of continuity, I suppose we can't very well tell when this arc took place, neh? That being said, I've decided to throw this arc in shortly after Grimmjow's self serving attack on Karakura town. Don't kill me if I messed up some japanese. I really suck at this whole second language thing, and thanks to those of you who've pointed it my mistakes. Now, I can learn from them, without making a complete ass of myself.**

**Enjoy!**

**Resolve**

"Bakana! Impossible!" Both Muramasa and Ichigo choked out, ending with the vizard glaring at the zanpaktou before continuing himself. "Inoue's not even a soul reaper! How can she have a zanpaktou?!"

"Actually...Kurosaki-kun, I kinda am." Orihime fidgeted a bit under everyone's intense stare.

"Eh?"

Ikkaku raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "Come on, don't mess with-

Pop.

Just like that, Inoue stepped out of herself. Her body fell to the ground, revealing her soul, clad in a black shihakusho, with an orange sash wrapped around her waist. Everyone stared at the sight, unable to believe their eyes.

"NANI?!"

"See?" She giggled, as everyone guffawed at the sight. "I really _am_ a soul reaper."

As Rangiku

"Oh." Suddenly, Rukia slapped one fist into her palm. "I think I understand what she means. Ichigo, do you remember that night? When you saved Inoue from her brother?"

"Eh? That was a long time ago, but..."

"Nrgh!"

Before he could finish, Muramasa doubled over, the coughing spasms returning with renewed fervor. His eyes glassed over, filling with blood for nary a second, then spilling over as he dropped to his hands and knees. However, instead of the inky black goop he had expunged before, a thick, slimy green residue pooled onto the grass. His renewed strength suddenly deserted him, leaving the zanpaktou to gasp for breath.

"N-Naze...what is this?"

_This? _An eerie chorus of distorted voices, filled with chilling laughter rang throughout his head, _We are not this. We are... you! _

"What...are you....

_Do not make us repeat ourselves! We...are...you!_

It felt as if he were being sucked into an endless abyss. He could not breathe this air, it felt as if he had instead ingested a gallon of water, and was suffering the horrid fate of drowning on dry land. Helpless to save himself, helpless to do anything other than retch, and struggle for oxygen.

Then, with a raw, tearing sound a huge clump of...something, exploded from his lips with a renewed assault of bile. Immediately, Muramasa groaned, the air returning to his withered lungs with such a sharp rush that he remained on his hands and knees for several moments, greedily taking in huge lungfuls of life giving oxygen. The voices were gone, he could think again.

Then, he saw it. With his The dark matter that had emerged with his squirmed and writhed in the puddle of bile for several moments, trying to make its way back to Murmasa, who angrlily lashed out at it. The effort was too much for his weakened form to sustain, and his body gave out.

"C-Careful!" Inoue was immediately there to support him, draping one arm around Muramasa's waist, whilst bring herself under his shoulder, an effort the zanpaktou made no effort to refuse, as his stomach divulged even more of the lime green liquid. "I wasn't able to eliminate all of the hollow reaitsu. There's still a litttle bit inside your bloodstream, but if I got rid of that...

"Tch." Ichigo scowled at the blobbish thing, now impaled on the end of Tensa Zangetsu, and trying to work itself free, though its efforts only served to further embellish its rotund shape around the blade. "Ugly little bastard. This thing...was inside him this whole time?"

Rukia suppressed a shudder, whilst Byakuya's only reaction was a slight, narrowing of the eyes. The congregation of zanpaktou each made a slightly disgusted sound, ending with Ruiriro Kujaku's remark at how hideous the creature was. Disposing of it with a flick of his wrist, Ichigo tossed the bulbous blod into the lake and brought his attention back to Inoue's conversation with Muramasa.

"Just...don't use your reaitsu too often, okay? You're not fully healed right now, so-

"Soka. I see." Muramasa, his composure finally regained, closed his eyes, for longer than the standard blink, wiped his mouth and nodded in mutual agreement. He had relied on the energy gained from countless gillian, vasto lordes' and adjuchas for far too long, to simple relinquish it in one day. He had survived by devouring the hollow's absorbing them through their reaitsu. In all likelihood, he'd have their power lingering in his veins for many years to come.

Steadying himself, Muramasa forced his body to stand upright. He was able to do so, but it required some effort, and the human girl took note of this, her lips pursing in concern for a moment, before parting to speak once more:

"Are you feeling better now?" Blinking heavily, Muramasa considered how to reply. He was unfamilair with this woman, even though her name readily came to mind. He could not bring himself to say it, however. It was far too soon for familiarity such as that.

"I... am. You have my thanks, Inoue."

A light pink blush lit the girl's face.

"I-It was nothing, r-really!"

A few gentle smile's broke out amonst Yumichika and the other's. YES, Muramasa had nearly caused the destruction of this world and the next, but at the same time, the scene before them was just too endearing for anyone to frown upon.

Almost anyone.

"Inoue Orihime,"Soi fon's stern voice cut through the mood like Seele Schneider would through spirit particles. "If you truly _are_a shinigami, and judging by your recent confession you are, and if Muramasa is your zanpaktou, which, considering his sealed state just materialized for you, he seems to be, then the Sou-taichou will want to hear about all of this this."

Throughout the speech, Inoue's face fell, but Muramasa remained stoic.

Now, he stepped forward, even as the leader of the Onmitskido turned her steel gaze towards him.

"And as for you, _zanpaktou," _Soi fon neither showed nor gave him quarter in her words. "Do not think that your actions will go unpunished, simply because your old master fell at the hands of Kuchiki Byakuya." Muramasa did not allow the verbal jab to provoke him, but a pained grimace flickered across his face at the mention of his master.

"As it is," Soi fon continued, heedless of the dismayed look Orihime wore, "You're facing charges of high treason, wanton destruction, conspiracy to release a known criminal, AND commit mass murder, all added onto your prior sentence of four hundred years ago."

"Very well then." Muramasa stepped forward. He held out his hands, and immediately, Soi fon stepped back, before realizing that the zanpakutou was actually surrending, as opposed to attacking. "If that is how I must attone for my crimes, then so be it."

--

"Muramsa."

"Genryusai." Muramasa replied, his tone bland as the quiet murmur of conversation continued outside. He stood there before Yamamoto all the same, uncaring that there was a contingent of Onmitskido officers just outside the door, in case he should try anything.

Chojiro Sasakibe took offense to this immediately. "How dare you speak to the head captain like that! Have you no respect?!"

"Sasakibe." The lieutenant sitffened noticeably as Yamamoto's gaze swiveled towards him. "Your concern is appreciated, however, it is entirely unesseccary at the moment. Leave us."

"H-Hai, Genryusai-dono." Chojiro still balked at the lack of respect the zanpaktou gave, but did as he was told all the same, sparing the rogue zanpaktou one last baleful glare over the shoulder before disappearing behind the wooden frame.

"You didn't have to dismiss him."

"Watch your words. Do you not think that you deserve _some_ punishment for your crimes, no matter how misguided your intentions were? I dismissed my lieutenant so that I could pass judgement on you without any sort of bias."

"..."

"Muramasa, you have incredible power. Power that could either be used for good...or for evil. While you may be resolute in your decision to stand by the Soul Society, by your new master I cannot take the risk of allowing you to roam free."

Despair welled up inside his heart, but Muramasa kept his expression stoic, his reaitsu already beginning to flar up. If he was going to be killed, then he'd at least take a few shinigami down with him, this he was certain off.

"However,"

However? That was usually a good thing. His reaitsu dimmed a bit, but remained, ready to return at the slightest threat or provocation. He'd make certain that this wasn't a trick. Unperturbed, the head captain continued:

"I have had Inoue Orihime thoroughly examined, and oddly enough there is not a trace of deceit or malice to be found in her. Furthermore, she is willing to join one of our squads, in exchange for clemency on your part. We have refused her offer."

"?!"

"Calm yourself. I said, we have refused her offer to_ join a squad_. We believe that you will be unable to cause any damage, so long as she remains your shinigami, however. That being said, I have decided to grant her request. Furthermore, the two of you may very well be the trump card in this upcoming war against Sosuke Aizen."

Muramasa didn't answer, he could only blink. He was free to go? There would be no restrictions set against him? It was almost too much to believe, too good to be true. He felt as if he would wake up from this dream at any second.

Yamamoto's lips quirked upward in a smile.

"For your crimes against the Soul Society, and the human world, you, Muramasa, are hereby sentenced to serve Inoue Orihime for the rest of your days. That is our judgment. Now, be off with you."

--

_"My ability?" Muramasa blinked, wiping aside a single blood red tear. "Why...you've been looking at it for at least an hour now, espada."_

_"Nani?"_

_Ulquiorra's perpetual scowl deepened further. He didn't sense anything out of the ordinary, in fact, Muramasa's reaitsu had actually taken a sharp dive, instead of increasing._

_But then...then he saw it. The walls and floor, even the ceiling itself, every single dimensional aspect constantly blurred and merged together, rippling across the facets that defined up, donw, left, and right, as if it were water._

_Even the Muramasa's appearance was inconsistent, never remaining anything other than translucent. Indeed, the zanpaktou's shape constantly blurred and flickered, sometimes leaving multiple afterimages behind as he appeared and dissapeared with every blink._

_"What is this? What have you done?"_

_Muramasa's once complacent visage quirked into a cruel sneer as he dissapeared and reappeared again._

_"Consider this, arrancar, my resolve to kill you. Your five senses are now mine to manipulate as I please. And because of that-"_

_Without another word, he bolted forward, the indigo orb that was his cero swirling within the palm of his left hand. Ulquiorra remained still, waiting until the very last moment, then struck out without hesitation, ramming his right hand into Muramsa's chest, where it erupted out the back with an explosion of gore._

_Surprirse flickered across Muramasa's face then..._

_Nothing._

_Through the rip he had torn, Ulquiorra was suddenly granted a view of an amused Muramasa, standing a few feet away, when he was supposedto be impaled and deceased. The Muramasa he had struck, faded away as if it had never existed._

_'Impossible!'_

_"You're depth perception is sorely lacking, arrancar." Startled, Ulquiorra whirled around, to find that his attacker had somehow gotten behind him, narrowly blocking the incoming stroke with his free hand, only to find that he had struck empty air. The zanpaktou scoffed, then a sharp kick to the solar plexus drove the espada away from him. "You can no longer wield that sword properly."_

_Frowning, Ulquiorra thrust a finger forward. Green light danced at the tip of the digit, rapidly forming the distinctively colored cero._

_"Useless." Muramasa appeared before him again, uncurled his fist into a hand, and splayed the fingers wide, the motion creating an ominous clacking sound as the nails briefly raked themselves across one another._

_Ulquiorra Schiffer could not move. Something had bound his arms to his sides his legs together, no his entire mobility was restricted, as if an invisble python had curled itself about his torso. He could not break free. He was held fast. Even turning his head towards Muramasa's voice, towards the sound of his footsteps, proved difficult._

_"Inoue Orihime is my master. As her zanpakutou, I swore to keep her safe. I swore to protect her. I will always be by her side, and I will repay the kindness she has given me."_

_An air of distaste, of anger, filled his next sentence and with a a flash of purple fire, the sealed state of himself reappeared within Muramasa's right hand, the sound of its summoning rebounding off the still ever shifting walls._

_"However, you, lapdog of Sosuke Aizen, would take her away from me without so much as batting an eyelash. You, who would coldly sever my bond with her, I cannot forgive!" He stalked forward then, cold, killing intent flashing within his pale blue eyes, the same light dancing of the silvery edge of his blade, as it was now raised high._

_"Therefore, I will keep my promise to Inoue, by cutting you down, and sparing her the pain of betraying her nakama." Ulquiorra did not so much as flinch when the tapered tip pricked his neck, drawing thin rivulets of blood. "Farewell, filthy hollow." Muramasa spat, raising his sword for the final, decapitating blow. "May I never see your wretched face again."_

_"I see. So, your confidence comes from your ideas of complete control over my five senses? Allow me to tear that away from you completely. Allow me to show you despair."_

_Muramasa halted ped his attack as Ulquiorra's reiatsubegan to swallow up the entire corridor of the Dangai. Crystal blue eyes widened in shock as this spiritual power began to materialize and envelop the Arrancar across from him, completely covering Ulquiorra in an entirely black chrysalis. As another wave of energy shot outwards at him, the dense blanket of reiatsu tore away, revealing a hellish and black demon._

_Before Muramasa could even move, before he could even think about defending himself, he was plummeting back towards the ground, his body spiraling as it fell. Ulquiorra appeared directly beside him, his golden irises staring harshly into the zanpaktou's startled face. From out of nowhere, a whip-like tail struck him in the ribs, sending Muramasa flying back up into the air. Ulquiorra was already above him, his cold expression steady as his long black tail shot forward and wrapped itself around the Muramasa's pale neck. While he dangled helplessly in front of him, Ulquiorra placed he hands together, creating a harsh glow of light from between his fingers._

_"Lanza del Relámpago."_

_He swiftly separated his hands and created a lance as the distance between his palms grew. His right fist grasped at one side of the spear and he swung back with it, his eyes looking into the face of his opponent. Without so much as a word, Ulquiorra's weapon roared forward, demolishing Muramasa's entire lower body as he followed through with the slice. He came back around quickly, releasing his tail's grip upon the zanpaktou's neck before completely..._

"Yadda! NO!" Muramasa flew out of the bed, eyes wide, breath coming in short ragged gasps as his eyes frantically scanned the room for any signs of the intruder. All he saw was darkness, dimly illuminated by the light of a lamp. The memories of that dream haunted him still, and he half expected an attack to come out of the darkness.

Nothing. No enemies in sight. He remained still, motionless, for another ten seconds, before the incomprehensible sounds of someone talking in their sleep, came from the next room over. Something about a futuristic robot destroying a watermelon??

_'Wait.'_

Muramasa exhaled heavily, beginning to realize that he was still in the guest quarters of the first squad. In the opposite room, he could feel Inoue's reaitsu, though this did little to soothe him any. Dreams such as this were an ill omen. He'd had a dream like this once before, shortly before Kouga lost his mind and was sealed away. Now, that dark dream had returned, but in a different form. It was as if he had been granted a glimpse into a possible future, a future in which he perished, protecting Inoue.

Strangely enough, this did not bother Muramasa. Though the vision had left him with an ominous sense of dread, at the same time, he knew that his attacker had NOT succeeded in whatever his goal was, and that, Muramasa believed, was a very good sign. He did not fear death. No, his true fear was far greater.

He trembled slightly. He clasped a hand over his face. He sank back down into the bed, refusing to lay down, refusing to close his eyes as the terrible, and inexplicable realization struck him harder than Kouga's blow.

He feared losing the person who'd turned his life around. He felt drawn to her, though he knew little of her, no more than her name. The one who'd driven him to where he was now, and spared him a horrible fate as a hollow.

Inoue.

Muramasa could not bear the thought of losing her.

He just couldn't. If she didn't have a shred of malice or intent to kill, then he would be that shred of hatred, that tiny bit of blood on the tip of her blade that symbolized cutting into an enemy.

_'Tomorrow, I will teach her how to use my abilities.'_

Tommorow.

And suddenly, with that thought locked inside his hear, sleep swept Muramasa into its comforting embrace.

**_Next time: Return to the human world, and return to normalcy? WRONG!_**


End file.
